The present invention relates to cleaning implements supported by hand, and more particularly to specially textured cleaning devices shaped like a mitten or glove to be worn on the hand when used.
Over the years, devices intended for a variety of uses have been formed in the shape of a glove or mitten. This allows the devices to be worn on the hand, eliminating the need to grip, balance or otherwise consciously support them, permitting the user to direct more attention to the task at hand. A device worn by hand can be specially textured over areas that correspond to a selected part of the hand well suited to the purpose of the device, e.g. the palm or fingers. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,823,245 (Firouzman), U.S. Pat. No. 6,018,837 (Andreu), and published U.S. patent application (Publication No. 2010/0218326 to Yamaguchi) disclose cleaning gloves with surfaces including abrasive material for scouring, along with sponge or other water absorbent material. Another published application (Publication No. 2007/0277288 to Sing) discloses a cleaning glove with a palm patch of cleaning material that can include bristles, wire, a roughened polymer or sandpaper.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,707,654 (Spence) discloses a massage glove including a latex body and pads formed with resilient members and beads.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,234,170 (Simic) discloses a protective hand covering in the shape of a mitten with nodules extending from both the exterior surface and the interior surface of the mitten. The inner and outer nodules are offset from one another, which is said to more effectively protect the hand against extreme temperatures when the mitten is used to grip hot or cold objects. U.S. Design Pat. No. D526,096 (Kaposi) illustrates a silicone glove with rounded nodules formed over the front and back exterior surfaces of a mitten shaped body.
Thus, glove-shaped and mitten-shaped devices, worn by hand, can have specialized surface textures to enhance a variety of functions performed by hand, and to afford protection to the user's hand when necessary or desired.
Users of cosmetic brushes are advised to clean their brushes frequently, both to enhance subsequent applications of makeup and extend the useful lives of the brushes. Frequent and proper cleaning avoids the accumulation of old makeup, skin oils and bacteria. These accumulations can undesirably affect the color of later applied makeup due to oxidation or binding with skin oils, and they may lead to skin problems or eye infections.
Cosmetic brushes frequently are cleaned by hand, applying a mixture of water and mild soap or shampoo to the bristles as the bristles are worked against the palm of the hand to expose as much bristle surface area as possible to the liquid mixture. This is followed by rinsing, typically working the bristles with the fingers while holding the bristles under running water. Typically, several repetitions of the washing and rinsing steps are necessary before clear water at the rinsing stage indicates sufficient cleaning.
Efforts to improve upon the results afforded by hand washing have led to products with textured surfaces intended to enhance wiping action along the bristles as a cosmetic brush is washed. For example, a product marketed as the Wildflower Makeup Brush Scrub Tub features a tub with a lid that contains an embossed wildflower grid. The grid is said to remove the cakey, waxy substances left by cosmetics when the wet, soaped brush is moved in a circular fashion or back and forth against the grid. Similarly, a product known as the Parian Brush Cleaning Refill Jar is provided with a plastic sifter in the form of a rectangular grid to help clean brushes.
Although these products enhance brush cleaning through improved wiping action against the bristles, they must be held or gripped by hand, or maintained by hand against a flat surface, while the user manipulates the brush relative to the textured surface of the grid. These products feature a single grid with a single texture. There is no tailoring of the texture to suit larger brushes as opposed to smaller brushes, or to individually address the disparate needs of the washing stage and the rinsing stages. These products, whether considered alone or in combination with hand washing and rinsing, fail to address the need to remove excess moisture following cleaning.
Accordingly the present invention has several aspects, each directed to one or more of the following objects:                to provide a cosmetic brush cleaning device with a variety of surface textures tailored for washing and rinsing both larger and smaller brushes;        to provide a cosmetic brush cleaning device usable in a manner that replicates natural movement and placement of the user's hands when a cosmetic brush is washed directly by hand;        to provide a cosmetic brush cleaning device in the form of a generally mitten-shaped closure configured to provide equal functionality, regardless of whether it is worn on the right or left hand;        to provide a cosmetic brush cleaning device that does not require the user's attention in terms of gripping the device or maintaining the device against a tabletop or other support surface during use; and        to provide a cosmetic brush cleaning device that provides for post rinsing removal of residue and excess moisture from the bristles.        